State-centrism as a factor of the national security system of Ukraine and the United Kingdom’s human security concept implementation experience.

Abstract

The tendency of today’s security environment is the transformation of the «security» concept and shifting its focus from the state to human and community. The principle of human-centrism has already been successfully incorporated into the political strategies of the world leading countries and is certainly relevant for Ukraine.

The research is focused on studying main deterrent factors on the way to implementation of the human security concept in the national security system of Ukraine. It aims to identify possible directions of implementation of this concept in the practical field of security and Ukraine’s defense policy using the United Kingdom’s (the UK) experience.

The article analyzes the statutory provisions for determining the national interests of Ukraine and their relation with the interests of the individual, society and the state. The results of the analysis conclude that Ukrainian legislation eliminates the most important criterion for national security, namely, the balance of 

vital interests of the individual, society and the state. This highlights the state-centricity of Ukraine’s national security system.

Given the experience of the world’s leading countries in implementing the concept of human security, it is decided to focus on exploring the British experience. The UK, being only at the beginning of the path to implementation of the human security agenda, became the first country to formally incorporate this concept into its defense policy.

Based on the analysis of the British experience of introducing the human security concept into the defense policy, a number of important steps for Ukraine on the path to building a national security system through the lens of human security have been proposed. If successful, the concept of human security will help to overcome the factor of state-centrism of the national security system of Ukraine and can be developed into a useful for practical policy analytical tool that will provide conditions for realization of interests of the individual, society and the state.